Sustainable Power Generation: Current Status, Future Challenges, and Perspectives

2019

Acronyms

AC Alternating current

ACC Air-cooled condenser

AFC Alkaline fuel cells

AI Artificial intelligence

AIS Air-insulated switchgear

AQSC Air quality control system

Btu British thermal unit

BOO Build, own, operate

BOP Balance of plant

BWR Boiling water reactor

CAES Compressed air energy storage

CANDU Canadian deuterium uranium reactor

CAPEX Capital expenditures

CCGT Combined cycle gas turbine

CCPP Combined cycle power plant

CCS Carbon capture and storage

CEMS Continuous emissions monitoring system

CFB Circulating fluidized bed

CHP Combined heat and power

COx Carbon oxides

COD Commercial Operation Date

COP Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC

CSP Concentrating solar power

DC Direct current

DCS Distributed control system

EGS Enhanced geothermal system

EIA US Energy Information Administration

EIC Energy Industries Council (https://www.the-eic.com/)

EPC Engineering, procurement and construction

FESS Flywheel energy storage system

FGD Flue gas desulfurization

GDP Gross domestic product

GHG Greenhouse gases

GIS Gas-insulated switchgear

GT Gas turbine

HAWT Horizontal axis wind turbine

HDR Hot dry rock

HMI Human–machine interface

HP High pressure

HV High voltage

HVAC Heating, ventilation and air conditioning

HRSG Heat recovery steam generator

IAEA International Atomic Energy Agency

IGV Inlet guide vanes

IIoT Industrial Internet-of-Things

IIR Industrial Info Resources (https://www.industrialinfo.com/)

IoT Internet-of-Things

IP Intermediate pressure

IPP Independent power producer

IR Inferred resources

IT Information technologies

J Joule

LED Light emitting diod

LNG Liquefied natural gas

LWGR Light-water graphite-moderated reactor

LP Low pressure

LSB Last stage bucket (blade)

LV Low voltage

MCFC Molten carbonate fuel cells

MNC Multinational corporation

MOX Mixed-oxides fuel

MV Medium voltage

NDT Nationally determined contribution within the Paris Agreement

NGL Natural gas liquids

NOx Nitrogen oxides

NSSS Nuclear steam supply system

NTP Notice to proceed

NUG Non-utility generator

O&M Operation and maintenance

OECD Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

OEM Original equipment manufacturer

OPEC Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries

OTEC Ocean thermal energy conversion

OWC Oscillating water column

OWSC Oscillating wave surge converter

PAFC Phosphoric acid fuel cells

PEMFC Polymer electrolyte membrane or proton exchange membrane fuel cell

PM Particulate matter

PMC Project management consultant

PPA Power purchase agreement

PRO Pressure retarded osmosis

PV Photo-voltaic

PWR Pressurized water reactor

RAR Reasonably assured resources

RBMK Russian abbreviation for the High Power Channel-type Reactor

RED Reversed electro dialysis

RFP Request for proposal

RFQ Request for quote

RO Reverse osmosis

ROI Return on investment

rpm Revolutions per minute

SC Supercritical

SCPP Simple cycle power plant

SDGs Sustainable development goals

SLD Single-line diagram

SOFC Solid oxide fuel cell

SOx Sulfur oxides

SI International System of Units

ST Steam turbine

TIV Total investment value

toc Ton of coal equivalent

toe Ton of oil equivalent

TPES Total primary energy supply

TPP Thermal power plant

UNFCCC The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

UPS Uninterruptible power supply

USC Ultrasupercritical

VAWT Vertical axis wind turbine

WCED World Commission on Environment and Development

WEC Wave energy converter

Part One

Introduction to energy and energy systems

Outline

Introduction

Chapter One. Concept of energy

Chapter Two. Evaluation of energy resources

Chapter Three. Energy system and basic electricity market

Introduction

Overview

Understanding what energy and power are, and how energy is derived from various sources and transformed to the most usable shape, is of vital importance for sustainable development. The first part opens up the discussion about fundamental energy sources, global planetary cycles, and basics of energy systems that function these days.

Chapter One

Concept of energy

Abstract

This chapter opens the discussion with the concept of energy, setting up the playground of the book. Energy is one of the major drivers of the economy and therefore requires proper treatment through quantification, which is the second point covered in this chapter. Finally, the types and sources of energy are considered along with the ways they can be transformed into secondary energy through conversion chains. Finally, this chapter states the background reasoning and the logic of the book strucutre.

Keywords

Energy; power; energy conversion; chemical energy; mechanical energy; nuclear energy; radiant energy; heat; electricity

Chapter Outline

1.1  What is energy

1.1.1  Concept of energy

1.1.2  Forms of energy

1.1.3  Sources of energy

1.2  How to measure energy and power

1.3  Basic principles of energy conversion

1.3.1  Chemical energy

1.3.2  Nuclear energy

1.3.3  Mechanical energy

1.3.4  Radiant energy

1.3.5  Heat

1.4  Electricity as the energy carrier

1.5  Motivation and structure of this book

References

1.1 What is energy

The term energy has been utilized in everyday life so widely that there is hardly anyone who would object to its understanding. And it is partly true: energy is an essential part of our daily activities, we use it every moment while doing any kind of activity. Energy is everywhere and runs our cars, powers our gadgets, brings light — these are a few basic examples we may ever think of. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the path of energy is by far more complicated and much more important to understand as it underlines deeper processes than, for example, pure charging of your cell phone. To reveal these paths and trends, we shall first start with the understanding of what energy really is.

1.1.1 Concept of energy

The concept of energy was first introduced in mechanics by English philosopher Sir Isaac Newton when he hypothesized about kinetic and potential energies. However, the emergence of energy as a unifying concept in physics was not adopted until the middle of the 19th century and is considered one of the major achievements of the century [1].

By definition [2,3], energy of a system is the capacity of this system to do work on another system, for example, to pull a weight against some force like gravity or friction. Work W is the consequence of the expenditure of energy and is defined as the product of a force F, acting on an object, and the distance d . In this example, force F is assumed constant over time of the movement, and acts in the same direction as the movement of the object.

Energy is a scalar quantity that cannot be observed directly, but can be recorded and evaluated by indirect measures. While the absolute value of the energy of a system is difficult to measure, the energy change is relatively easy to evaluate , so that

This means that this weight would accumulate some energy when lifted to any height. When pulling a weight over the surface or pumping air inside a vessel, one would require energy to perform this work, while generating some heat.

1.1.2 Forms of energy

Energy can neither be created nor destroyed, it can only be converted from one form to another. This statement is called the first law of thermodynamics and defines internal energy as a state function and provides a formal statement of the conservation of energy [1].

Energy comes in various forms; however, in general the total energy of a system can be represented as a combination of two types of energy:

•  Potential energy reflects the potential (or possibility) of a system to have motion or to do work. This energy can have different nature and may be due to the position of the objects relative to others, stresses within the object, electric charge, etc.

•  Kinetic energy is determined by the movement of the object or the composite motion. It is usually defined as the work needed to accelerate an object of a given mass from the rest state to its current velocity. In classical mechanics this energy is proportional to the mass of the object and the square of velocity, i.e.,

These categories of energy have been introduced as a convenient way to describe the system and its behavior, as well as energy it may derive or consume from various sources. While these two forms of energy are sufficient to describe all categories of energy, it is still convenient to refer to a particular combination of potential and kinetic energies based on the nature of the physical or chemical phenomena. Some of these forms of energy that an object can possess as a measurable property include:

•  Mechanical energy as the sum of macroscopic kinetic and potential energies;

•  Electrical energy as potential energy caused by or stored in electric fields;

•  Magnetic energy as a form of potential energy caused by or stored in magnetic fields;

•  Gravitational energy as a form of potential energy caused by or stored in gravitational fields;

•  Chemical energy as the potential energy stored within the chemical bonds;

•  Electromagnetic or radiant energy, which is a form of potential energy stored in the fields generated by the propagated electromagnetic radiation, including light;

•  Nuclear energy that binds nucleons to form the atomic nuclei. It can be released during nuclear reactions;

•  Thermal as a type of kinetic energy on the microscopic level due to the motion of particles.

The above given list is not exhaustive and may include some other specific forms of energy used in particular areas of technology, physics, or other disciplines.

1.1.3 Sources of energy

When we use energy in our activities, we do not really consume it but rather transfer or convert it into another form that would bring us a benefit. Lighting up a bulb with electricity would lead to the energy transfer into light allowing our eyes to see, as well as producing some heat. Heat is a part of energy transferred to the surroundings to warm them up, which may not be always beneficial. Such dissipation of energy, which is not used for the purpose, requires much bigger initial supply. Eventually, energy consumption by all our devices and processes, similarly to the mentioned bulb, dissipates energy and finally wastes it. This means that we shall find such sources of energy, which are naturally concentrated and easily accessible for further transfer. On the other hand, in order to minimize wasteful dissipation of energy (like heat from a bulb), we shall make sure that the transfer process from this source is efficient, i.e., the energy we get from the natural source is fully utilized without or with minimal waste.

These concentrated and accessible natural sources of energy are usually referred to as primary energy sources. Primary energy is extracted or captured directly from the environment and can be of three types:

•  Nonrenewable, which comprises energy stored in fossil fuels like coal, natural gas, crude oil, etc., and mineral (nuclear) fuel;

•  Renewable that can be recovered by the Earth and is therefore considered infinite (relative to human history). These include solar radiation and its derivatives like hydro power in the form of falling and flowing water, winds, biomass, tidal energy (caused by the orbital movement of the Moon), and heat of the Earth;

•  Waste of human activity which, similar to the fossil fuels, incorporates some chemical energy.

Remark 1.1

In some literature, waste is considered as a part of renewable energy. In this book, we shall treat waste as a separate source of energy as it is fully linked to human activity.

Each source of primary energy has its own resource potential. This theoretical value defines the physical upper limit of the energy available from a certain source of energy [4]. This value is used when considering the amount of resources available (either physically or theoretically) for utilizing it to produce secondary energy. Depending on the current rate of the energy transformation, i.e., the speed of converting one category of energy into another, one can estimate the number of years of powering the world with this resource under the assumption of the constant rate of consumption.

1.2 How to measure energy and power

Before going into further details of the energy and its conversion, it is essential to understand the ways how to measure energy. Energy measurement units will be required not only for the energy supply and demand calculations, but also for the comparison of various technologies, economic evaluations, and contractual agreements, making investment decisions and calculating the returns, as well as for understanding the implications of the human activity on the climate and the environment.

There are two major ways to express the values of energy. Firstly, energy values can be expressed in basic units used in physics — joules. The joule is a standard unit introduced in the International System of Units (SI) and is used to measure energy, work, and amount of heat. By definition, one joule is a unit of energy that quantifies the amount of work done on a system when an applied force of one newton is required to move an object one meter. For example, the amount of chemical energy stored in a barrel of crude oil is approximately 6 GJ. In other words, six billion joules of energy can potentially be extracted from a barrel of oil and then transferred into another useful form [5].

Similar to joule, there are several other units used in practice. British thermal unit (Btu) is the energy unit in the English system, which defines the amount of heat necessary to raise the temperature of one pound of water one degree Fahrenheit. The same approach is used to define a calorie [2]. Of course, no matter how you define one unit of energy in various systems, you can still compare them.

Even though joule, British thermal unit, and calorie quantify an amount of energy, they sometimes lack transparency. Therefore in the energy industry, energy units can be also expressed in terms of the type of fuel they quantify. The petroleum industry measures energy by tons of oil equivalent (toe) or barrels of oil equivalent (boe), which define the amount of energy stored in one ton or a barrel of crude oil, respectively. A standard barrel of oil contains 42 US gallons, or 159 liters. There are approximately 7.3 barrels of oil in a ton, so approximately 41.9 GJ of energy are contained in one ton of oil [5]. These units are extremely useful when comparing various types of fuels adjusted to one of the major energy sources — the oil (see Table 1.1).

Table 1.1

Major energy measurement units utilized in energy industry.

Similar to oil, tons of coal equivalent (tce) is a measure that is used to describe the energy in coal. The amount of energy in a tce can vary because of different coal types (due to their chemical composition), but the value of approximately 29 GJ per ton is accepted as an international standard [5]. Its comparison to other units is also given in Table 1.1.

In nuclear physics and in nuclear reactor engineering, a unit named electron-volt J.

The above industry-specific units are often used for quantifying the overall amount of energy contained, transported or consumed. However, the consumption is usually expressed not in absolute numbers but in terms of the amount per period of time, or rate. Rates are a way of expressing how much energy an entity or facility is producing or consuming in a given amount of time. The rate at which the primary energy is converted to the secondary energy is called power [5]. More precisely, power is the energy exchange in time [2]. The unit called watt (W), which gives rise of one joule of energy per second, is the unit from the SI system that describes this rate. For example, a generator with the power of 100 W is capable of converting mechanical energy into electrical at an average rate of 100 joules per second. A large power plant generates electricity (converts mechanical energy into electrical) at a rate of 500–700 MW or 500–700 MJ per second [5]. Alternatively, in English units, power is in Btu/hr, which equals to 0.293 W.

Therefore power expressed in watts defines the capacity of the system to convert energy, i.e., capability of converting unit energy per unit time. It means that it is only the characteristic of the system and its capability. Consider, for example, a rotating machine that has the capacity of 1 kW so that it is capable to convert 1 kJ of energy per second. Assuming that this machine has worked for one hour (or 3600 seconds), we derive the total converted energy equal to

This number is usually referred to as the kilowatt-hour, which is another common energy unit. It simply describes how many kilowatts of capacity are used or converted in one hour.

Remark 1.2

The correct symbol for the kilowatt-hour is either kWh or kW⋅h, however, the latter is rarely used due to unnecessary complexity (dot can be omitted and kWh can be used instead). The notation kW/h is not correct.

The amount of various measures of energy may lead to the difficulties of reading and comparing the data coming from multiple sources, especially dealing with international data. As all the calculations and analysis have to be carried out in one system of units to ensure we compare the units of the same nature, there is a list of conversion factors readily available in Table 1.2 based on the IEA unit converter.

Table 1.2

Energy conversion rates for major units.

Source: calculated with the IEA unit converter: https://www.iea.org/statistics/resources/unitconverter/.

1.3 Basic principles of energy conversion

A large number of energy conversion processes take place in nature, so that various forms of energy are available for humankind. In our activity we require these various forms of energy: mechanical to do work and power machines, heat for industrial need and heating, radiant for lighting, etc. Man is capable of performing a number of additional energy conversion processes by means of various devices invented during the history of mankind. Such devices may be classified according to the type of construction used, the underlined physical or chemical principle, or according to the forms of energy appearing before and after the action of the device [6].

Generally, we can classify these energy converters into two broad categories:

•  Devices that convert one form of energy into another; and

•  Devices which change the characteristics of the same type of energy.

For a number of energy forms, Table 1.3 lists some examples of energy conversion processes or devices currently in use or contemplated, organized according to the energy form emerging after the conversion. In several cases more than one energy form will emerge as a result of the action of the device, i.e., heat in addition to one of the other energy forms listed. Many devices also perform a number of energy conversion steps, rather than the single ones given in the table [6].

Table 1.3

Examples of major energy conversion processes and technologies listed according to the initial energy form (first column) and the converted energy form. Some energy forms can be converted into multiple forms via a set of processes.

Some of the minor processes like piesoelectric effect or the release of radiation during heating are omitted.

a Heating is caused by the radiation and the kinetic energy of the particles inside the reactor.

Source: Adapted from [6], based on [7].

The energy conversion scheme is therefore chosen according to the available source of energy and the needs, i.e., which type of energy is finally required as the result. In many cases this scheme incorporates several processes which end up as an energy conversion chain.

The efficiency with which a given conversion process can be carried out, i.e., the ratio between the output of the desired energy form and the energy input, depends on the physical and chemical laws governing the process [6]. An increase of the steps within the energy conversion chain would evidently contribute to the efficiency losses.

The power generation industry is focusing on converting various forms of energy, mostly primary energy, into electricity and heat as the end product consumed by the society. This process, according to Table 1.3, may not be always completed in one stage. The process flow mostly depends on the current level of technology, as well as economic matters and sociopolitical grounds. In certain cases this conversion can be undertaken in several ways, and the choice is usually driven by economic benefits. Therefore, the energy system is all about the proper conversion of energy into electricity and/or heat with the minimum possible waste at reasonable cost.

1.3.1 Chemical energy

Chemical energy is stored in various sources, for instance, coal, natural gas, and oil, which together are referred to as fossil fuels, as well as in biomass (e.g., wood or gases produced out of biomass), hydrogen, and other products of human activity: waste products, industrial by-products, etc.

1.3.1.1 Conversion of chemical energy into heat

Chemical substances like hydrocarbon have a certain amount of energy stored in their structure. During chemical reactions with oxygen (oxidation), hydrocarbons react to produce carbon dioxide and water with the release of energy in the form of heat and radiation. Usually referred to as burning, these chemical reactions are the fundamental conversion process of chemical energy into heat and radiation. In general, supplying common air is enough to provide the required level of oxygen for combustion, therefore this process has been known for many years and became one of the most studied and established. In many power generation process combustion is considered as the first stage, as schematically represented in Fig. 1.1.

Figure 1.1 Conversion of chemical energy into heat.Chemical energy is converted into heat during the combustion process — an exothermal chemical reaction that requires a supply of oxygen and produces waste.

The efficiency of the process depends on many factors, for example:

•  Composition of the burnable material that defines which part of the compound can undergo reaction with oxygen;

•  Structure and shape of the material that defines which part of it would react: burning powder material will be more efficient than burning a single large piece that may not even be completely burnt;

•  Concentration of oxygen within the incoming air. Pure oxygen would require less effort to maintain reaction;

•  Amount of energy dissipated in the form of radiation.

1.3.1.2 Conversion of chemical energy into electricity

Apart from conversion into heat, chemical energy can be converted straight into electrical energy through an electrochemical reaction. This reaction takes place in an electrochemical cell — a device that works in two directions:

1.  Generating electrical energy from chemical reaction, and

2.  Facilitating chemical reaction through the introduction of electrical energy.

An electrochemical cell consists of two half-cells, separated by a semi-permeable membrane or by a salt bridge. We will consider an example of a typical galvanic cell with zinc and copper half-cells, as schematically represented in Fig. 1.2. Each half-cell consists of an electrode out of metal that is submerged in a solution:

,

.

Figure 1.2 How a typical electrochemical cell works.An electrochemical cell consists of two half-cells, separated by a semi-permeable membrane or by a salt bridge.

Both electrodes are connected by an external conductor. Because both metals are submerged into a solution, the chemical reaction would start and some of the cations (positively charged ions of metal) would dissolve in this solution through the reaction of oxidation, leaving negatively charged electrons in the metal. However, as metals differ, the speed of chemical reaction differs as well, and therefore one of the metals will have a more negative charge than the other (more electrons). In our case, Zn cations will dissolve faster, and therefore the excess of electrons from the zinc electrode would migrate through the external conductor to the copper one.

. This would lead to the continuous flow of electrons through the external conductor or electric current, until all zinc dissolves in the solution or until all copper is absorbed from the solution through the reduction reaction.

A modern battery usually consists of one or more electrochemical cells connected in a required pattern. While they employ similar processes, the chemical composition differs.

The above described electrochemical reaction is limited in time and either has to be stopped to completely recycle the battery or recharge it applying electrical energy and initiate the reverse chemical reaction.

There is, however, a different opportunity which has been implemented in a device called a fuel cell — an electrochemical cell that converts the chemical energy from an externally supplied fuel into electricity through an electrochemical reaction. Contrary to batteries, fuel cells require continuous fuel and oxygen supply to maintain reaction.

While fuel cells come in many varieties, they still operate in the same way. Made out of anode and cathode separated with the electrolyte, two chemical reactions occur on the interfaces, as schematically represented in Fig. 1.3.

Figure 1.3 Schematic diagram of a hydrogen-powered fuel cell.Anode and cathode are separated with the electrolyte, and two chemical reactions occur on the interfaces.

The anode, for example, made out of platinum, breaks down the hydrogen fuel into electrons and ions. This increases the amount of electrons in the anode and, being connected by an external conductor with the cathode, the excess electrons would flow through it. At the cathode the electrons and positively charged hydrogen ions that migrate through the electrolyte to compensate for the excess of electrons on the cathode would combine with oxygen to form water and be removed from the system to maintain the process.

As the whole process sounds pretty simple, it is still subject to multiple technological difficulties; however, some designs have already entered mass production. The implementation of fuel cells will be discussed in detail in Chapter 23.

1.3.2 Nuclear energy

Nuclear energy is the internal energy of the nuclear kernels, which is released under certain nuclear transformations. In nature, some heavy elements can emit radioactivity, when the naturally unstable atomic nuclei lose energy by emitting radiation like alpha particles, beta particles, neutrons or gamma rays or electrons. Therefore, a material containing such unstable nuclei is called radioactive. The same process can be initiated artificially so that the radioactive material will release energy in a controlled manner. Such man-made conversion process takes place within the special devices called nuclear reactors, where a specially treated amount of radioactive material can initiate and maintain a controllable nuclear fission reaction that would release large amounts of energy.

This nuclear energy, which comes in the form of kinetic energy of the fission products and fragments, and electromagnetic radiation, is converted within the reactor to heat as the particles and radiation collide with the atoms of the materials of the reactor and the medium that is used to absorb and collect energy and transport it out of the reactor. This process is schematically illustrated in Fig. 1.4.

Figure 1.4 Conversion of nuclear energy.The energy of nuclear fuel is converted through the fission reaction into radiant energy and kinetic energy of the particles, which in turn are converted into heat within a reactor. During this process, a by-product of the nuclear reaction is waste.

Nuclear energy conversion is a complicated process that requires a lot of attention due to its nature and, consequently, high level of the implemented security: radiation is invisible and thus cannot be immediately felt by a human in case of an accident compared to heat or electric shock, for example.

1.3.3 Mechanical energy

Mechanical energy can be found in nature in multiple forms, for instance, one can mention:

•  Pressurized hot gases or other fluids which have enough potential energy that can be turned into kinetic energy of the flow;

•  Flowing water of the streams and rivers that have enough energy stored in the running water;

•  Wind, or flowing air, which has the same logic as flowing water;

•  Waves, tides, ocean streams, etc.

In order to capture this type of energy, special rotating devices called turbines are used. These turbines capture the mechanical energy of the flow and convert it to another type of mechanical energy in the form of rotation. Evidently, due to friction during rotation, some energy is dissipated in the form of heat. Moreover, turbines usually do not capture all mechanical energy of the flow which also negatively contributes to the overall process efficiency.

Next, rotation of the turbine can then be used in multiple ways (see Fig. 1.5):

•  Run other machinery, for example, pumps, and do some work;

•  Run a machine called electrical generator which converts mechanical energy of the rotation to the electrical energy. The physics of the process involves rotating magnetic field that induces current, which is then transferred to the consumer.

Figure 1.5 Conversion of mechanical energy.Conversion of mechanical energy of the fluid flow (e.g. water or air) is usually done through the mechanical energy of the rotating shaft, which can be further employed for doing work or converted into electrical energy.

It is important to mention that energy of the rotating equipment (wheel or shaft) is an important step within both conventional and emerging energy conversion chains. In many cases this is the only way to transform mechanical energy into electricity through coupling the shaft of the turbine to the electrical generator.

Moreover, mechanical energy can be also converted into potential energy (increase of pressure) and thermal energy (increase of temperature) of the medium when this medium (usually gas) is compressed within special equipment called compressor.

1.3.4 Radiant energy

One of the most common natural sources of radiant energy is the Sun: its electromagnetic radiation comes to the Earth and can be converted in several forms: thermal, chemical, and electrical. While the naturally ongoing energy conversion processes transform solar radiation into heat and chemical energy, humankind is focused on converting radiant energy into heat and electricity.

1.3.4.1 Natural conversion to heat

While the solar radiation propagates through the atmosphere and reaches the surface of the Earth, part of this energy is absorbed by the environment it goes through. The photons, or the electromagnetic waves, collide with the particles of the medium and therefore transfer their energy to the medium, which increases their temperature.

This manages the number of critical processes of the Earth. Unevenly heating up the atmosphere and the surface, due to the rotation of the planet, the inclination of the axis, and the ellipticity of its orbit, allows:

•  Having comfortable conditions for the existence of life;

•  Having variable temperature zones that lead to pressure differences, which further lead to winds and ocean currents;

•  Maintaining the water cycle of the Earth.

1.3.4.2 Natural conversion to chemical energy

Natural conversion of radiant energy into chemical energy takes place during natural photochemical reactions. These reactions are vitally important for the whole existence of life on our planet, and the two main examples include:

•  Conversion of the molecules of oxygen O2 into ozone O3 in the upper layers of the atmosphere;

•  Photosynthesis — a process used by plants and some other organisms to convert radiant energy (simply light) and some other elements, for instance, water and carbon dioxide, into chemical energy stored in carbohydrate molecules, e.g., sugars. These molecules can be further used as a source of energy in energy conversion chains.

1.3.4.3 Conversion into electricity

Conversion of radiant energy into electricity takes place within the devices called photovoltaic (also known as PV) or solar cells. These devices use the physical phenomenon known as photovoltaic effect, when light is absorbed by the material, causing excitation of an electron or other charge carrier to a higher-energy state.

The photons of the light hit the solar cell and are absorbed by semiconducting material, e.g., silicon, as schematically illustrated in Fig. 1.6. They excite electrons by giving them photon's energy and knock them from their orbits within atoms to a higher-energy state, where they are free to move around the semiconducting material. As electron leaves the network of bonds, there is a positively charged hole left there, which can be filled by a neighboring electron letting the hole propagate through the material. In other words, the absorbed photon creates a pair of a free electron and a hole.

Figure 1.6 Conversion of radiant energy into electricity.Special semiconducting material absorbs radiant energy, which excites electrons and pulls them through the outer conductor to create current.

We can simplify the semiconducting material to have a layer of n-type silicon (negative charge with high concentration of free electrons) which is put in close contact with the area of p-type silicon (positive charge with a much higher concentration of holes) so that a diffusion of electrons from the n-type to p-type occurs, and holes diffuse in the opposite direction. When electrons diffuse across the p–n junction, they recombine with the holes, so that the interface layer of the n-area has the positive charge, and the interface layer of p-area becomes negative. They will create the electric field called depletion zone or energy barrier.

While the outer n-type area is exposed to the light, photons are continuously absorbed by the n-type of silicon and excite electrons to make them free. Therefore the electron and hole separate because by the positive space charge within the depletion zone an electron will be pulled into the n-layer, while the hole would go to the p-area. In other words, the excess of electrons cannot flow through the depletion zone, as there is an energy barrier they cannot penetrate through. Therefore, these electrons have to move to the positively charged p-area (with excess of holes) through the outer conductor causing an electric current to flow. This phenomenon is called photovoltaic effect.

1.3.4.4 Conversion to heat

Conversion of radiant energy into heat has the same nature as that occurring in the atmosphere and is also similar to the nuclear energy conversion process. The electromagnetic radiation collides with the atoms of a material and increases their energy, which results in a temperature increase.

However, to increase the efficiency, the radiant energy is collected and guided with the help of mirrors, which allow concentrating a larger amount of radiation in one place to heat up the required material, for instance, evaporate fluid.

1.3.5 Heat

Thermal energy, or heat, is contained in the medium, which can be solid, liquid or gaseous and can be further transferred to another medium through the heat conduction process. We shall name three major processes:

•  Conduction or diffusion takes place, when two objects are in close contact, so that the thermal energy flows from the object with a higher temperature to that with lower.

•  Convection is the heat transfer between the object and the fluid, which flows around the object and either absorbs its energy (if the object has higher temperature) or increases it.

•  Radiation is the transfer of energy by electromagnetic waves, similar to nuclear or radiant energy.

In most power applications a medium (either liquid or gaseous) is required to transport this energy and transfer it to another medium. While both of them are not likely to mix, the process takes place in devices called heat exchanges: for instance, the heating fluid flows inside a tube and heats it up, while the other heat absorbing fluid flows around that tube.

, so that thermal energy is transformed into mechanical energy due to the pressure of that fluid.

1.4 Electricity as the energy carrier

When we convert energy from one form to another for purposes of convenience to meet some desired end use, we can consider some intermediate and easy-to-handle energy form to serve as the energy carrier.

Most of the energy conversion processes implemented nowadays are aimed to deliver electric energy. This energy is the category of energy that is transported via the motion of electric charges, e.g., electrons. It is usually produced by electromagnetic induction in an electric generator that converts mechanical energy of rotation to create moving electromagnetic field, or via some other less popular energy conversion processes discussed earlier: electrochemical reactions in fuel cells or photovoltaic process. All these processes basically create a difference in electrical voltage along a conductor which in turn causes electrons to flow and form electric current.

Technologically, conversion of other forms of energy into electricity is a real-time process, meaning that electricity can be produced for the required level of consumption but is difficult to be stored in large quantities at the present level of development. Except in comparatively small amounts, technologies for storing electricity are cumbersome and often costly. Rather, electricity can be stored via conversion to mechanical work, which can then be stored as potential energy [7]. Therefore, managing a continuous balance of electricity generation and its consumption is vitally important and becomes one of the primary tasks of an energy system.

Despite the difficulty to store electric energy, it still has a number of extremely valuable advantages that put it first in terms of efficiency and usability. For example:

•  Electricity can be converted from all primary and secondary energy sources, including renewable ones;

•  Electricity can be transported rather easily and over long distances. While it is weightless, it can be easily transmitted and distributed to all types of consumer through a system of electric conductors;

•  Electricity itself is clean and does not damage the environment on the global scale even in case of accidents;

•  There exists a variety of established and flexible technologies to change parameters of electricity for various use: direct and alternating current, frequency, voltage, current, etc.;

•  Electric energy is easy to convert into other forms of energy via established and efficient technologies, for example, electric motors of various sizes and capacities;

•  Direct use of electricity allowed multiple applications with electronics being the most significant.

It is not much of an exaggeration to say that electric energy, or simply electricity, has become an overwhelming source to provide energy for humankind activities. While it plays now and would most probably continue playing a major role as the most flexible and convenient energy carrier, it still does require further research and development in the way to efficiently store it in larger quantities, which are required for industrial purposes.

1.5 Motivation and structure of this book

Energy is the fundamental driver of human development. Without it, we would not be able to feed ourselves, protect against severe climate conditions, travel, extract natural resources, use them and manufacture goods. Basically all human activities require various forms of energy, and this trend would only grow along the way of humankind development.

This therefore poses a number of questions, though obvious but still very important, answering which would help us to ensure the ongoing development of humankind:

•  What are the accessible sources of energy we can consume nowadays and in the coming future? Is there enough energy for us and the next generations, if we continue to increase our rate of consumption?

•  What are the major types of energy we can utilize in our everyday activity, including living, industry and transportation? Why electricity is one of the most useful for us in terms of efficient production, transmission and consumption?

•  What is the level of technology we have at the moment to generate electricity? What is the level of efficiency and what are the ways to increase it?

•  Evidently, energy conversion drives the overall development. But does it bring any harm to the humankind or the environment? How can we mitigate these challenges and ensure we do not do irreversible damage?

•  What will be our future? How long can we maintain the situation with the current energy conversion approach as we are aiming to grow?

Having this list of questions in mind, this book is therefore organized in seven parts. The first one, starting with the introductory basics discussed in the current chapter, will continue by focusing on the detailed discussion of the three main forms of energy readily available on the Earth. Secondly, we discover major planetary cycles which impact the energy resources available on the Earth, with their estimate and forecast. Furthermore, we pay attention to the energy system and its components, mostly concentrating on power generation and its role for humankind.

The second part is fully devoted to a complicated topic of sustainable development — the approach we have to decide on to maintain our growth without compromising on the environment and development. It first starts with the definition and principles of sustainability, its boundaries and limitations, followed by the sustainable energy system and the impact of traditional energy systems of the environment and human life.

Parts three to five cover conventional and established technologies of converting fossil fuels, energy of water, and nuclear energy into electricity. Thus, we cover in detail historical development, technology, major equipment, and project execution in detail, as it serves three goals: (a) discussing history of the technological development and providing a fact base, required for understanding emerging technologies; (b) understanding the impact of most widespread technologies, the ways to mitigate the negative consequences and at which cost; and (c) showing that these technologies still have to be considered as a bridge towards sustainable development.

Consequently, the sixth part focuses on the emerging technologies, which are usually considered as the major drivers of a sustainable energy system. These include conversion of wind, solar, biomass, geothermal energy, and the energy production from waste. Separately, we discuss some other forms of energy like tidal, wave, fuel cell technology, etc., and the potential of their conversion.

And finally, in the seventh part we shall be able to consolidate the complete picture, reviewing various technologies on the way towards sustainable development. Followed by the neighboring areas like energy storage, transmission and distribution, we finalize this book with the open discussion of the sustainable energy system of the future: key challenges, growth drivers, and choice of options.

References

[1] I. Dincer, M. Rosen, Exergy: energy, environment and sustainable development. Elsevier Science; 2012 9780080970905.

[2] Y. Demirel, Energy: production, conversion, storage, conservation, and coupling. Green energy and technology. London: Springer; 2016 9781447123729.

[3] R. Dunlap, Sustainable energy. Cengage Learning; 2014 9781305156210 672 pp.

[4] S. Teske, European Renewable Energy Council, Greenpeace International, Energy [r]evolution. A sustainable world energy outlook 2015. Greenpeace International; 2015.

[5] J. Moan, Z. Smith, Energy use worldwide: a reference handbook. Contemporary world issues. ABC-CLIO;